Hee-Chan Hwang and Pedro Neto are currently Wolverhampton’s favorite attacking duo.
“The simple attribute Neto and Hwang display – purposeful pace – gives Wolverhampton the edge in all situations that they have long been missing,” the BBC reported on Dec. 12.
Wolverhampton drew 1-1 with Aston Villa in the eighth round of the 2023/24 Premier League at Molineux Stadium in Wolverhampton, England, on Aug. 8 (ET). Hwang Hee-chan scored the game’s opening goal.
In the eighth minute of the second half, Pedro Neto crossed the ball after a tremendous run down the right flank, and Hwang showed his goal-scoring prowess to calmly finish for his fifth goal of the season.
Hwang is off to his best start so far this season. Since the start of the season, Hwang has started all seven league games. However, he has come on as a substitute in three of them. He came on as an 18th minute substitute in the opening game against Manchester United and then again in the second round against Brighton in the 9th minute.
Hwang had earlier scored his first goal of the season against Brighton. He headed in a corner kick from Pablo Sarabia in the 16th minute of the second half to give Wolverhampton hope of a comeback from 0-4 down.
This goal earned him the trust of his manager and he started the next game against Everton. Despite Wolverhampton recording their first win against Everton, things didn’t go well for Hwang. After playing the full 45 minutes, he was substituted for Aite Nuri at the start of the second half. As many predicted, it was another hamstring problem.
Since returning from his hamstring injury, he has been in good form. He scored back-to-back goals against Crystal Palace in Round 4 and Liverpool in Round 5, and was the hero as Wolverhampton handed Manchester City their first Premier League defeat of the season. He now has five goals in eight games, including this one.
One of the reasons for Hwang’s resurgence is his attacking partner, Pedro Neto. Head coach Gary O’Neill has given Neto and Hwang a game plan. Neto was told to run first and that Hwang would be in the penalty area for Neto, and Hwang was told to be ready to get to the goal when the ball came in because he would have a great chance to score.
Hwang did just that and has already scored more goals than any other Wolves player last season. Of course, there was much more to Wolves’ tactical plan against Villa than that, and O’Neill was full of praise for the intelligence and ability of both players.안전놀이터
When asked about the two players, O’Neill said: “Fantastic. Both players did really well and fit into their roles. Hwang is very understanding and intelligent and knows when to get into the penalty area.”
“I thought Neto could score from the penalty area more than Consa, so I put him there, but Nelson was hovering around Pedro, so I knew the ball was going to come into the penalty box, and as soon as I gave the ball to Neto, I told Hwang Hee-chan.”
“He works really hard and values his job, he keeps getting into good areas and getting rewarded. Both players are a big help when we are attacking,” he said, adding that he had high praise for both players.
Hwang Hee-chan added: “I really enjoy playing with him. Not only with Netu, but also with Cunha and all the other teammates, we have a good understanding of each other. Our team spirit is very positive and the atmosphere is very good. We are going to keep fighting and not give up until the end. With all these things, we are moving in a good direction.”